Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Ham Stock

Exquisite ham stock flavour pairings and recipes, revealed through data science.

Ham stock immediately conjures the embrace of protease and the bracing kiss of pork, but beneath its umaminess lies a complex symphony of subtle flavour notes, such as glutamate, iron, and hints of brine, contributing remarkable depth. The key to finding the perfect pairing for ham stock is understanding how these notes harmonise.

To illuminate these harmonies, we embarked on an ambitious journey, analysing thousands of ingredients. Each was meticulously deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, allowing us to pinpoint precisely which notes complement in both classic and unexpected ways. Our findings reveal, for instance, how pea's hexenal tones can carry ham stock, or how mustard seed's brassica notes create an unexpectedly harmonious bridge with the fermented aroma.

An ingredient's flavour profile is determined by its core characteristics (e.g. carnal, maillard, and nectarous) enhanced by layers of subtle aroma notes (outer bars). When pairing ingredients, aim for a mix of core traits to build balance, and select complementary aroma notes to create harmony.

The Secret Language of Flavour

To understand exactly which flavours harmonise, we compiled a database of over 50,000 ingredient pairings commonly used in cooking. We then analysed these pairings, identifying the specific flavour notes that frequently appear together.

The Flavours That Harmonise With Proteolytic Notes

Our analysis shows that the flavour of protease is strongly associated with the flavour of cabbage. This suggests we should look for ingredients with a cabbagy flavour, such as mustard seed, when pairing with the fermented proteins aroma accents of ham stock.

The recipe below provides inspiration for pairing ham stock with mustard seed.

Harmonious Flavours Of Ham Stock

Just as our analysis highlighted that protease and spinachy flavours often complement each other, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavour notes present in ham stock. E.g. the porky flavours of ham stock are often used with brettanomycine and balsam flavours.

The aromas associated with the various notes of ham stock can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.

Matching Flavour Profiles

The flavour profile of pea offers many of the notes complementary to ham stock, including grassy and spinach notes. Because the flavour profile of pea has many of the of the features that are complementary to ham stock, they are likely to pair very well together.

The chart above shows the unique profile of pea across 150 dimensions of flavour, while the recipes below offer inspiration for bringing these flavours together with ham stock.

Recipes That Pair Ham Stock With Pea

Linked Flavour Notes

Looking at the notes that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of ham stock, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.

The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of ham stock, along with the complementary aromas associated with each note. While the right side shows some of the ingredients that share many of the aroma accents complementary to ham stock.

What To Drink With Ham Stock

The rice notes in genmaicha tea make it a perfect pairing with ham stock. Likewise, the spinach flavours in kale juice create a match made in heaven. Explore a variety of ingredients below that beautifully complement the unique character of ham stock below.

Which Vegetables Go With Ham Stock?

Choose vegetables that cut through its savoriness or anchor its fermented aroma. Pea offers vibrant, clean counterpoints, its verdant freshness lifting the palate. Celery add a gentle, oniony brightness, while sweet potato introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.

Alternatively, embrace vegetables that harmonise with ham stock's meatiness. The addition of salsify, with its subtle petrichor notes, can complement the lamb beautifully. Potato bridges earthiness and citrus zest, while jersey royal potato lends a fresh earthiness.

How Flavonomics Works

We've pioneered a unique, data-driven approach to decode the intricate art of flavour pairing. Our goal is to move beyond intuition and uncover the science of why certain ingredients harmonise beautifully. This rigorous methodology allows us to provide you with insightful and reliable pairing recommendations.

Our analysis begins with over 50,000 carefully selected recipes from acclaimed chefs like Galton Blackiston, Marcello Tully, and Pierre Lambinon. This premium dataset ensures our model distils genuine culinary excellence and creativity.

Each ingredient from these recipes is deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, creating a unique numerical "flavour fingerprint." This quantification allows us to apply advanced analytical methods to identify complex patterns between flavour notes.

We identify popular ingredient combinations that frequently appear in our recipe database. Regression analysis is then performed on these pairings to statistically validate and pinpoint truly harmonious flavours.

These insights drive our predictive model, which allows us to take any ingredient (e.g., Ham stock), analyse its detailed flavour profile, and accurately reveal its complementary flavours and perfect ingredient partners.